Surprise! It’s a $750k Net Worth Update!
Have you checked your portfolio recently? If so, you may have been pleasantly surprised to see a “new high score” in the net worth department. If not, maybe you should give CountAbout a try? Countabout helps you track your spending and your net worth and helps you see if you’re on track for your financial goals. So far, the S&P 500 has gone up by 13% in 2026 and nearly 3% in the last month alone! If you’ve seen your net worth hit a new high but haven’t celebrated it yet, perhaps it’s worth putting it into perspective and seeing what that money could do for you.
Europe doesn’t have a Chipotle, so I’m using a Boston Chipotle for a price comp. At the one near Boston Wharf, a regular chips and guac costs $4.90. $750,000 gets me over 153,000 orders. I can eat this during every meal for the next 140 years, or once a day for the next four centuries.
~Darcy, WeWantGuac
In this article, Darcy of WeWantGuac celebrates hitting a new milestone– $750,000. Darcy is a member of the FIRE (financial independence/retire early) movement and retired earlier this year with a net worth between $700,000-$730,000. After nearly 6 months of living off of her portfolio doing a life of full-time travel across the US and now Europe her net worth has now crossed the $750,000 mark. (Funny how that works… right?) Darcy has nicknamed $750,000 the “Phinneas Fogg” net worth milestone because at a safe withdrawal rate of 4%, this net worth could generate $30,000 per year, which she estimates to be enough for a trip around the world. Darcy also breaks lots of other possibilities of what $750,000 could buy. If your net worth has stopped inspiring joy and is just a random number on the screen, this article can help you feel empowered by how your money could work for you.
Build a reliable cash machine
While Darcy’s around-the-world lifestyle sounds pretty sweet, to do that, you’re going to need to get money from somewhere other than your job. While some people have access to a pension or social security, most people, especially early retirees, are living off of their portfolio. Or in other words, living off money that the money they already saved earns for them. While we intuitively understand that we need to “live off our assets” when we retire, understanding what that looks like in the real world can be difficult to understand.
Be patient. Earning enough dividends to fund your entire life won’t happen overnight. It takes years, maybe decades.
~Millionaire on the Prarie
In this article, Millionaire on the Prairie discusses how to live off of your portfolio. In this article they refer to their portfolio as a reliable cash machine… once you’ve done the hard work of amassing assets, they can provide a reliable stream of payments for you if you are smart about it. And as Darcy shows, if the market is doing well, it is possible that your cash machine can continue to appreciate in value even as you are living off of it. The first step is to open an investment account and invest money. (There are many different options for what to invest in, so this step requires some research on what works best for your financial situation). With continued contributions (and reinvesting dividends and capital gains) you will eventually reach a point where your investment account can provide for your daily needs. While the article can be boiled down to two ideas (open an account and then fund it), the article gives some practical tips and encouragement as the pathway to a reliable stream of income can feel overwhelming.
How to Negotiate Your Salary at a New Job
Finally, if you want to invest more money and potentially retire early, one great way to do that is by getting a raise. If you get a sudden increase in your income and keep your lifestyle the same, you can invest the difference and make big strides on the early retirement journey. While it’s possible to get promoted within your current company, most of the time the easiest way to negotiate a raise is when you start a new position. While starting a new position is a great opportunity to start with a blank slate in the salary department, you’ll need to advocate for yourself to get the best deal possible.
It becomes the base every future raise, bonus, and job change gets calculated from, which means a number you accept out of relief today can quietly cost you tens of thousands of dollars over the next decade
~Barbora Lee, DebtDiscipline.com
In this article, Barbora Lee of DebtDiscipline.com walks you through how to negotiate getting your best salary in a new job. The article starts off with an important fact– setting your initial salary is super important as it anchors all future raises and salary considerations for the rest of your time with that company. You’re not just your current salary, but if you undershoot your initial salary, you may be selling yourself short for years to come. Given the importance of the starting salary, Lee recommends doing your homework and getting as much information as possible before you begin negotiations. Then it’s time to actually turn your research loose and apply it to a high-stakes negotiation. If you’re gearing up for a new role, definitely read Lee’s article to give yourself your best chance for success.